Thermal conduction switches play an important role in heat management for numerous systems. One example is heat management in spacecrafts and satellites. Thermal conduction switches are used in spacecrafts and satellites for such applications as reservoir cooling, residual propellant scavenging, chill down of equipment, and long-term storage of ascent module propellant.
However, known thermal conduction switches fail to deliver one or more performance requirements needed for certain applications, such as for space and ground-based low-temperature environments. Such performance requirements include high efficiency, short cycle times, low hysteresis, good displacement, good thermal isolation in their open (non-conductive) state, high heat transfer ratios, high reliability and simplicity of design (e.g., no reliance on external sensors or complex actuation mechanisms). For example, space programs around the world have recently refocused on human spaceflight beyond low-Earth orbit. The United States and China have both declared an intention to establish human habitation on the moon, and the United States intends eventually to do so on Mars. Such extended human missions will require high-performance thermal conduction switches that provide performance and reliability beyond those currently known, for applications such as methane or oxygen liquefaction or storage. Accordingly, there is a need for high-performance, light, reliable and mechanically simple thermal conduction switches.